Desk drawer user interface

ABSTRACT

A display oriented software user interface for the generation and display of a secondary display region within a primary display region of a computer controlled information management system having windows or localized sections of displayable information and icons. The secondary display region, Desk Drawer, providing advanced capabilities to the management system by generating a readily accessible region wherein icons may be placed and always accessed thereafter when the secondary display region is present. The presence of the secondary display region may be governed by a separate screen region responsive to the cursor display position.

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/480,969, filed Jun. 7,1995 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,657,049, which is a continuation of applicationSer. No. 08,090,470, filed Jul. 12, 1993 abandoned, which is acontinuation of application Ser. No. 07/709,715, filed Jun. 3, 1991abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a computer controlled software userinterface system within an information management system. Specifically,the present invention relates to user interface systems that create andprovide ready access to a secondary display region in addition to theprimary display region on a two-dimensional computer data displayscreen. The secondary display region contains and provides varied accessto sources of information.

(2) Prior Art

Information management systems, such as those which are used or can beadapted for use in computer systems, are placing increasing demands onthe physical resources available for displaying information to the user.There exists a need to compartmentalize and categorize specific segmentsof information in order to effectuate its retrieval and management.Therefore, information management systems utilize specially developedscreen displays that incorporate individual display images as well asdisplay information formats in order to allow the user to effectivelygain access to the information system. Therefore, a particular screendisplay can be thought of as having both display "tools" and display"information." The display tools give the user special ability toorganize and manage information while the display informationconstitutes either the resultant data desired or the application programthe user desires to operate.

The current art in the field of computer display information managementtechnology utilizes rectangular sections of screen display area tomanage the computer information. Prior art known systems include theFinder™ user interface of the Apple Macintosh™ computer which ismanufactured by Apple Computer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. The Finder™information management system (also referred to as "Finder™ userinterface" or just "Finder™") is based on display principles using"windows" and "icons" to help manage computer information. The main orroot window is called the "desktop" area, or more generally the primarydisplay region. The desktop, or primary display region, is always open(displayed on the screen with its contents accessible or at leastpartially accessible), and takes up substantially the full displayscreen area when other windows are not open. The desktop is usuallyvisible in the background when other windows are open.

Existing inside any particular window, including the desktop itself,other windows containing separate information or windows may containinformation identifiers called "icons." An icon is a particular screenidentifier for a particular collection of computer information;typically an icon may represent a "file" which is either a collection ofdata or a program or program segment. An icon also may represent theclosed state of a window. Icons are graphic images displayed on thecomputer screen and usually correspond to the type of information storedwithin the file. Icons give the user access to the particular filerepresented by the graphic image when the icon is visible. The use oficons and windows is well known in the art.

The "file" is the information packet that the user wishes to utilize,create or modify; each particular file has an associated nameidentifying the file. Therefore, any given file may be located in theinformation management system by knowing a file name, an icon graphicrepresentation associated with the name, or a window locator name. Allinformation (files) situated within a particular window are identifiedwith that particular window's own identification location within thecomputer information management system. Therefore, any particular fileinformation can be retrieved knowing its particular identification nameand its window name. Accordingly, the resulting screen display utilizingthe Finder™ management system may be broken down into multiple widowsand graphic icons.

Another important element of the prior art information management systemis a screen cursor. The cursor, or cursor means, allows direct usercontrol over the management system as described above. The Finder™system is complemented with a "mouse" and a corresponding "pointer"which makes up the cursor means. The user has control over the mouse,which is a mechanical-electrical means that translates two-dimensionalmouse movement into a two-dimensional screen position movementrepresented by an animated pointer or arrowhead. The user contacts anddirects the mouse. When the mouse is moved freely on a table top thenthe pointer on the screen will move animated in a similar andproportional manner. The mouse also contains one or more push buttonswhich can be used to effectuate control over the cursor pointer byselecting or deselecting specific icons or other display tools. It issaid that the cursor pointer is "activated" when the mouse button isdepressed and the pointer remains active until the button is released.Pointer activation may also be initiated by sequences of mouse buttonpresses, such as a "double click" or rapid button press twice insequence. In the current art, certain screen window locations aresensitive and react to the cursor pointer position without activationand are often called "hot spots" or "active." When the cursor is firstactivated while on an deselected icon that icon becomes "selected;" andif the cursor is activated again (as in double click) then the icon issaid to be "activated."

Access to information in a prior art user interface system for a displaymanagement system is therefore based on windows, icons and pointermovement of the cursor. Therefore, it is fundamental that beforeinformation may be accessed it must be displayed on the screen by anicon, name or similar representational image. This is the case becausein a display screen management system the icon may not be accessedunless it is currently displayed on the screen in some form. To access afile, the cursor pointer is placed on the visible icon or visible filename and the pointer is activated. A closed window may be represented byan icon or a window name. A window opens when the pointer of the cursorrests on the visible icon or visible name representing the closed stateof the window and the pointer is activated. Within the open window,files may be displayed by icon or by name. An open window, of variousgeometries, may be rectangular and will exist within the display area ofthe main viewing screen on the desktop. Multiple windows may be open atone time, typically with the most foreground window corresponding to themost recently opened window and the background windows representingthose opened previously. In the organization scheme described, it isappreciated that files are nested within windows and windows can benested within other windows; the main or root window being the desktoparea, or primary display region.

During any normal session using the window based information system,many windows can be open at one time with many displayed icons within.Windows may overlap and partially, or entirely, hide other windows oricons. What results is that the particular information the user wants toobtain may be hidden behind several layers of windows and may bedifficult to access; when an icon is hidden by another window it istemporarily not accessible. This is referred to as the "windowoverlapping" problem. There are several instances where windowoverlapping problems routinely arise in prior art display managementsystems. A few of the more troublesome scenarios are described below.

In order to complete a task, often the user must access a single iconwithin an open window that exists in the background, that is, covered orpartially covered by other windows. The desired icon ("target" icon)within the window is no longer visible, and therefore not presentlyaccessible. The overlapping windows or those that lay "on top of" thetarget window must be closed or moved away ("shuffled") so that thetarget window and target icon are visible and thus accessible. Windowshuffling is time consuming, confusing and often very tedious for theuser. If multiple routine icons need to be systematically accessed insequence then multiple window shuffling procedures may be required. Itis extremely desirable to have an advantageous system that could offerready access to certain often used icons while avoiding windowshuffling. The present invention is a novel and useful way to solve theproblems associated with screen management, as just described.

Another window overlap problem plaguing prior art systems arises whenthe user requires two icons to complete a task and each icon is within adifferent window. The resulting screen display may contain several openwindows from past tasks that may clutter the screen display withunwanted information. This information may obscure the desired windowsand icons. In many instances the overlapping windows are not unwanted,but hold the first of the desired icons in displayable view. In order toaccess the second desired icon, the user must close the overlappingwindow that holds the first icon, then gain access to the second desiredicon. Since the previously closed window holds the first desired icon itmust be opened again so that the present task can be completed. Again,this process is often time consuming and confusing for theuser--especially when the hidden second icon is one that is routinelyrequired. In this case the user is engaged in constant "windowshuffling" as described above. The present invention is a novel andadvantageous way to solve the problems associated with the screenmanagement, as just described.

Window shuffling problems also occur when files are copied or moved fromone window to another. File information is transferred between windowsby displacing the icon between the windows. For instance, the prior artFinder™ provides several facilitated avenues for information movementusing the cursor pointer and the icon based system. However, in order toeffectively move the information, both present location and destinationlocation windows must be visible on the display screen. The user pointsto the source icon, activates the cursor, then "drags" the icon to thedesired destination window and deactivates the cursor pointer. Theinformation within the icon will then be moved or copied to thedestination window. Of course, this assumes that the source anddestination windows are both open and viewable which is rarely the case.When multiple windows are open they typically overlap, thus blockingcertain sources and destination windows. The task of moving or copyinginformation as described above becomes difficult and tedious becausecertain windows must be rearranged in order to allow both source anddestination window to be open and viewable. What is needed is anadvantageous interface that guarantees certain window access byeliminating the window overlap condition. The present invention is anovel and useful way to solve the problems associated with the screenmanagement as described above.

There have been several prior art methods of display screen managementfor information management systems to help facilitate the access anddisplay of windows and icons on the screen. However, none of thesesystems have effectively solved the window shuffling and iconoverlapping problem.

A known display screen management system utilizes a root or main window("desktop") that is much larger in dimension than the displayablescreen; this has been done by Tektronix. At any given moment only afraction of the total desktop region is displayed to the user on thescreen with the remainder being blocked out. The current display screenthen acts as a "camera lens" that "pans" a subsection screen area of thedesktop at time. By moving the mouse such that the cursor moves to theedge of the screen and then continuing to move the mouse the user causesthe screen to pan in two dimensions thus shifting different portions ofthe desktop on (and off of) the displayable screen section. Forinstance, if the desktop was a two dimensional area 1 foot by 1 foot,and the screen was 0.5 foot by 0.5 foot, then the screen at any timewould represent only one quarter of the total desktop. In order to seethe remainder of the desktop, the user would have to scroll in twodimensions the current screen position. As new a new desktop section isuncovered, an old desktop section becomes blocked out. This screenmanagement system however fails to provide an adequate solution to theproblem of overlapping windows. This prior art system offers little inthe way of preventing the window shuffling problems.

The Finder™ system prior art, while meeting with considerable successand allowing a substantial amount of access to windows and icons, doesnot provide the optimum solution for the problem of overlapping windowsas described above. The Finder™ environment is the system in which thepreferred embodiment of the present invention resides.

Other prior art includes a computer program called Multifinder™ producedby Apple Computer Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. This program allows theFinder™ to be accessible while another application is running. The usercan easily switch back and forth between the Finder™ environment and thewindow of the current application. However, Multifinder™ does notprovide an adequate solution for the window shuffling problem.Multifinder™ does not provide an area where icons (files) can be storedand later easily retrieved without reshuffling open windows.Multifinder™ merely provides an avenue for accessing the desktop whilethe user is within another application.

Another known utility is the Apple Menu made by Apple Computer Inc.which is included in the Finder™ environment. When the pointer is placedon the Apple logo on the top of the Desktop menu bar and the mousebutton is pressed, then the Apple Menu is activated and a list ofseveral program, document, and folder names becomes visible in a pulldown menu. (For a detailed description of pull-down menus refer to U.S.Pat. No. Re. 32,632, by Atkinson, assigned to Apple Computer Inc.)Programs in the list can be invoked by mouse activation, however, theApple Menu is not a standard Finder™ window. Accordingly, whileadvantageous in many aspects, the Apple Menu does not provide anymechanism whereby icons can be simply placed (dragged) inside aneasy-access window receptacle using the cursor and treated as icons ofany other normal window of the Finder™ environment. Further, the Applepull-down menu automatically closes when an item in its list isactivated. So the menu must be reactivated for each activated item. Insum, Apple Menu windows provide only limited access to programs of thecomputer system. Therefore, the Apple Menu does not offer a viablesolution to the window overlapping or shuffling problems.

A program called Lumina, offered by Time Arts, Inc., provides a pop-updisplay called a tool palette. The palette comes up upon the cursorposition reaching a certain edge of the screen, however files or iconscould not be placed into nor taken out of the palette. Indeed, thepalette was not a window in the most basic sense because no fileinformation could be passed into or out of the Lumina palette.Therefore, Lumina does not offer a viable solution to the windowoverlapping or shuffling problems.

Disk Top is another prior art program that operates under severalenvironments and applications and provide access to the files stored inthe management system. The program creates a window for itself, in whichit displays the file names of the programs within the system. Thisprogram is generally used as an avenue to quickly access the finderinformation while the user is within another application. The accessallowed to the Finder™ is limited and considerably less than that of theMultifinder™ software system. The Disk Top system does not solve theproblem of window overlap and shuffling. Disk Top does not provide anyspecial easy-access window receptacle for icon transfer via cursorcontrol. Disk Top provides an access path into the finder and itsmanagement tools, but does not provide any extended functions to thedesktop similar to the present invention.

Therefore, there arises a tremendous need to develop a system thatprovides an easy access window space that can hold multiple icons(files) and upon opening at any time by the user would immediatelyprovide access to the icons within, regardless of the number of iconsplaced or to be placed in the primary display region. Additionally, whatis needed is such a window or secondary display region, Desk Drawer,that is always accessible when open; it opens on top of other windowscurrently open or windows subsequently opened outside of the secondarydisplay region. The window, or secondary display region, must beaccessed easily by the cursor pointer and must provide all thecapabilities of other standard windows within the Finder™. There doesnot exist such an interface in the prior art.

The present invention provides such an easy-access window. The resultantinterface window is called a "Desk Drawer." It is also referred toherein as a secondary display region, especially where the root window,or desktop is referred to as a primary display region. The Desk Draweracts as an extension of the desktop environment, or primary displayregion, providing an always accessible window with easy access to theicons placed within.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a computer controlled information management system including adisplay screen containing a primary display region, and means forsimultaneously and selectively displaying within the primary displayregion a plurality of display windows and/or icons, some of which mayblock or partially block the view of others depending on the number ofwindows and/or icons being displayed at any given time, a display systemcomprising: a first means for generating and displaying a secondarydisplay region covering at least a portion of the primary display regionand any windows and/or icons being displayed within that portion of theprimary display region, the secondary display region and its contents,when present, being completely viewable within the display screen; asecond means for removing the secondary display region from the displayscreen thereby allowing the primary display region to be viewed in itsentirety; a third means for displaying a plurality of icons within thesecondary display region upon display of the secondary display region bythe first means, the plurality of icons within the secondary displayregion being visible over any windows and/or icons within the primarydisplay region; a fourth means for selectively transferring icons intothe secondary display region when the secondary display region isdisplayed, by dragging the icons from the primary display region intothe secondary display region and depositing the icons into the secondarydisplay region; and a fifth means for selectively transferring iconsfrom the secondary display region, when the secondary display region isdisplayed, by dragging the icons from the secondary display region tothe primary display region, and depositing the icons into the primarydisplay region.

The display system further wherein the fourth means for selectivelytransferring icons into the secondary display region includes draggingthe icons from the primary display region, triggering the first means todisplay the secondary display region, and dragging the icons into thesecondary display region displayed; and wherein the fifth means forselectively transferring icons from the secondary display regionincludes dragging the icons from the secondary display region,triggering the second means to remove the secondary display region, anddragging the icons into said primary display region.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of the computer system architecture.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of the typical computer system of thepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of a command or option menu for the AppleFinder™.

FIG. 4a is an illustration of an information management system having acenter window open with icons and Desk Drawer currently in the closedstate.

FIG. 4b is an illustration of an information management system having acenter window open with icons and Desk Drawer in an open state. Thecursor means is used to open and place a document into the Desk Drawer.

FIG. 5a is an illustration of Desk Drawer closed with the cursor pointeron the drawer handle bar to open.

FIG. 5b is an illustration of a display screen on the Finder™ with DeskDrawer open and no icons selected.

FIG. 6 is an illustration of a display screen on the Finder™ with theDesk Drawer closed and no icons selected.

FIG. 7a is an illustration of Desk Drawer with the cursor pointerselecting the Desk Drawer handle bar.

FIG. 7b is an illustration of the Desk Drawer after having adjusted theDesk Drawer using the handle bar.

FIG. 8 is an illustration of an expanded Desk Drawer with icons spreadthroughout the drawer space.

FIG. 9a is an illustration of a Desk Drawer closed with multiple drawerspace handles.

FIG. 9b is an illustration of Desk Drawer open with multiple drawerspace handles and one drawer space accessible.

FIG. 9c is an illustration of Desk Drawer open with multiple drawerspace handles and another drawer space accessible.

FIG. 10a is a first flow chart of Desk Drawer functions.

FIG. 10b is a second flow chart of Desk Drawer functions.

FIG. 10c is an expanded flow of Desk Drawer functions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention concerns the two-dimensional selection and display of aportion of information, a secondary display region, expanding theportion of the available display area in the user interface of acomputer controlled information management system. The followingdetailed description describes the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, a two-dimensional Desk Drawer, as a means for moreefficiently managing and extending the available display area of theinformation management system. Desk Drawer may operate, in oneembodiment, as an extension of the available desktop area in the Finder™environment. The Desk Drawer provides an easy-access window for managingany icons placed within the window.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention is implemented on anApple Macintosh computer system using the Finder™ user interface.However, it is easily recognized that alternative computer systems maybe employed (e.g. pen and tablet based systems). In general, suchcomputer systems as illustrated in block diagram form by FIG. 1,comprise a bus 100 for220 communicating information, a processor, 101coupled with the bus for processing information and instructions, arandom access memory 102 coupled with the bus 100 for storinginformation and instructions for the processor 101, a read only memory103 coupled with the bus 100 for storing static information andinstructions for the processor 101, a data storage device 104 such as amagnetic disk and disk drive coupled with the bus 100 for storinginformation and instructions, a display device 105 coupled to the bus100 for displaying information to the computer user, an alphanumericinput device 106 including alphanumeric and function keys coupled to thebus 100 for communicating information and command selections to theprocessor 101, a cursor control device 107 coupled to the bus forcommunicating information and command selections to the processor 101,and a signal generating device 108 coupled to the bus 100 forcommunicating command selections to the processor 101.

The display device 105 utilized with the computer system and the presentinvention may be a liquid crystal device, cathode ray tube, or otherdisplay device suitable for creating images and alphanumeric characters(and ideographic character sets) recognizable to the user. The cursorcontrol device 107 allows the computer user to dynamically signal thetwo dimensional movement of a visible symbol (pointer) on a displayscreen of the display device 105. Many implementations of the cursorcontrol device are known in the art including a trackball, mouse,joystick or special keys on the alphanumeric input device 105 capable ofsignaling movement of a given direction or manner of displacement. It isto be appreciated that the cursor means 107 also may be directed and/oractivated via input from the keyboard using special keys and keysequence commands. Alternatively, the cursor may be directed and/oractivated via input from a number of specially adapted cursor directingdevices, including those uniquely developed for the disabled. In thediscussions regarding cursor movement and/or activation within thepreferred embodiment, it is to be assumed that the input cursordirecting device or push button may consist any of those described aboveand specifically is not limited to the mouse cursor device.

FIG. 2 illustrates the basic Apple computer system that is theenvironment used by the preferred embodiment of the present invention.It is appreciated that the Apple computer system is only one of manycomputer systems that may support the present invention. For purposes ofclarity and as one example, the present invention is illustrated withthe Apple computer system. FIG. 2 shows the Apple™ Macintosh computer 84which is a particular implementation of the block diagram of FIG. 1. Akeyboard 81 with keys 86 and keypad 87 is attached to the computer 84along with a mouse device 82 and mouse push button 83 for controllingthe cursor. The mouse device 82 and the push button 83 make up a cursordevice. It is appreciated that many other devices may be used as thecursor device, for instance the keyboard 81 may be substituted for themouse device 82 and button 83 as just discussed above. The computer 84also contains a disk drive 85 and a display screen 75.

The present invention, a Desk Drawer region, provides additional controland capability for the windowing and cursor based information managementsystems, such as the Finder™ system. These features of the presentinvention are described below. The general operation of windows orcursors is described only where necessary to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present invention since these methods are readilyknown to those of ordinary skill in the art.

General Operation of the Present Invention

The present invention, Desk Drawer, in the preferred embodiment to bedescribed should be viewed fundamentally as an extension of the Finder™desktop. This desktop computer interface was created to analogize thetop of an actual office work desk with each open interface windowsymbolizing and resembling the files and papers placed on top of atypical office desk. When interface windows are open, they overlap eachother in a similar fashion to papers and files that are scattered on adesk with the most recently placed document on the top of the pile andothers found beneath. The present invention, Desk Drawer, as will beseen, includes its own window or secondary display region and isanalogous to the center drawer of the office desk. For instance, whenthe drawer of an office desk is open, the person has access to all thecontents of the drawer space regardless of what papers happen to be onthe top of the desk. (The term "drawer space" refers to that space madevisible and accessible to a person when a desk drawer is opened.) Inessence, the drawer space, when the drawer is open, is an extension ofthe work space of the office desk since papers can be placed on the topof the desk or in the drawer. Similarly, regardless of the interfacewindows currently open, or subsequently opened in the Finder,™ the DeskDrawer interface provides an easy access avenue for the icons within thedrawer space without being covered up.

In accordance with the present invention, the Desk Drawer interface isalways accessible and exchanges information easily between the drawerspace (secondary display region) and the desktop (primary displayregion) which includes open windows within the desktop. The drawer of anoffice desk is always accessible to the person regardless of theparticular job in which he or she is engaged. Therefore, the presentinvention is always accessible to the user during the operation of anyapplication program. For example, while running a word processorsoftware application, Desk Drawer may be opened and its contentsaccessed; or, alternatively, items can be placed within the open drawerto be accessed later. Additionally, just as one can easily take a paperoff her desk and place it into the open drawer, the Desk Drawerinterface provides an easy exchange capability between information inthe desktop environment and information within the drawer space.Accordingly, under the present invention, items can be moved easilybetween the Finder™ environment and the drawer space using the cursordevice.

For example, assume an office worker routinely notes her calender duringthe day. She decides not to place the calender on the top of the deskbecause it may become buried beneath the day's office paper on top ofher desk. Rather, she places the calender in the desk drawer so thatregardless of the papers on the top of her desk, once she opens thedrawer the calender is immediately accessible for updates. This basictheory of immediate and facilitated access of information applies andrelates to the present invention, the Desk Drawer interface.

In the most general sense, the following is a description of some of thebasic aspects of the Desk Drawer interface. A more detailed disclosureof Desk Drawer will follow. When the Desk Drawer user interface programis activated, by the processing logic, and the cursor appears above thescreen bottom, Desk Drawer will be closed and appears as a thin handle(bar) along the bottom of the screen. Like any office drawer whenclosed, only the handle is visible. The width of the handle is smallwith respect to the screen height and is merely large enough to view andaccess. This handle is always present and active regardless of whether aprogram is operating or if the Finder™ desktop is present. When thecursor pointer tip is positioned on top of the bar this, without more,the processing logic causes the Desk Drawer to open and reveal thedrawer space. The processing logic of the present invention opens DeskDrawer by "animating" upwards a predetermined, but user adjustableheight (about 1/5 the height of the screen) over the screen displayspace to display a rectangular drawer space having width equal to thatof the screen width. The handle is still visible and rests on top of thedrawer space. The drawer space, having highest display priority, willcover or partially cover any display image presently on the screen. Whenthe drawer space is visible, the icons placed within the drawer aresimilarly visible and therefore accessible. While the cursor is withinthe drawer space the computer keeps the drawer open and the cursor canaccess the icons. When the cursor is moved above the handle, exiting thedrawer space, then, without more, the processing logic of the presentinvention closes the drawer and the thin handle returns to the bottomposition.

While the preferred embodiment of the present invention is discussedwith reference to the environment of the Finder™ desktop, such approachis for purposes of clarity. It is to be appreciated that since the DeskDrawer is always active, the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention can be accessed within any software application program. Ifanother application were running, the handle bar of the Desk Drawerinterface remains visible and accessible. Therefore, all of thefunctions and capabilities that the Desk Drawer interface affords withrespect to the desktop can be applied similarly to any otherapplication. And, since the drawer space of the Desk Drawer may beviewed as an extension of the desktop, the drawer space may allow accessto the desktop while the user is within another application. Again, itis to be appreciated that the Desk Drawer is fully operational whileanother application program is operative.

Specific Operation of the Present Invention

A window region (window) is usually a rectangular portion of a computerdisplay screen in which information is displayed to the user. Windowregions may have different shapes, including circular, trapezoidal, ortriangular. The information may be in the form of textual, numerical orgraphical data. A window, for example, may be used to represent a singlenotecard within a stack of cards. The data displayed within the windowrepresents the information written on the notecard. One well-knownsystem for displaying such notecards is the Hypercard™ systemdistributed by Apple Computer, Inc. A window management system is aninformation management system that provides controls with which the useris able to select the size and location of the window within thephysical boundaries of the display. The windowing system also providescontrols for scrolling or selecting the portion of the data viewablewithin the window. The present invention, Desk Drawer, is a special userinterface created to provide an easy access window, or drawer space,where icons can be placed and readily accessed via special cursorcontrol.

In FIG. 3, a menu 14 may be used to activate the process of the presentinvention, however in most instances the present invention is normallyactive upon the initiation of the information management system via thecontrol of the operating system software. Generally, menu 14 iscomprised of a region of the display screen in which the user ispresented with a list of command options. The user selects a specificoption 12 within the desired command column 11 or within the desiredcommand area using a mouse, joystick or other two-dimensional cursorcontrol device. Suboption C is being modified by the cursor pointer 50.After the cursor is positioned, the command is selected by theactivation of a function key or keys associated with the cursor controldevice. U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,652 reissued as U.S. Pat. No. 32,632 on Mar.29, 1988 to inventor, William Atkinson and assigned to the assignee ofthe present invention discloses a device suitable for use as a cursorcontrol device and means for implementing the described menu control.This method of command or function selection may be used as a vehicle,throughout the description of the present invention, for settingsoftware options and enabling or disabling features. As discussedearlier, other means of command activation may also be employed forsetting of software options such as the entry of a special code orcommand sequence from the keyboard or numeric keypad or an iconselection. An icon representing the Desk Drawer may be selected causingthe computer to initiate the present invention. More commonly, thepresent invention may also be activated through a software interfacewith the computer's operating system software or other applicationsoftware. Using this method, the computer activation of Desk Drawer maybe automatic thus independent of direct user action.

Refer to FIG. 4a which illustrates the Finder™ environment of thepreferred embodiment as well as shows the closed state of the DeskDrawer. When the computer activates Desk Drawer, but Desk Drawer remainsclosed, it appears as a handle or bar 10 on the bottom of the displayscreen as illustrated in FIG. 4a. When in this state the handle bar iscalled a "first triggered display region." The Desk Drawer handle 10 isthe only visible component of the present invention when the Desk Drawerremains closed. FIG. 4a also shows a typical display screen of the AppleFinder™ user interface. The display screen 75 constitutes the outerboundary of the illustration and represents the physical display consoleof the computer system. The desktop area 20, referred to as the primarydisplay region, is the shaded portion of the screen visible in thebackground. In the lower portion of the desktop there exists an openwindow region 60 and inside are several icons 55, 56, 57, and 58. Window60 is open and therefore (as with all open windows of the Finder™) itscontents may be accessible by the cursor pointer 50 when the contentsare visible. All four icons 55, 56, 57, and 58 are visible and thusaccessible by the cursor 50. Icon 57 is said to be highlighted. The filename 34 of icon 56 is located directly below the icon; this position iscalled a field. The window title 65 is shown on the top center of thewindow rectangle region and is another field. The cursor pointer 50 iscurrently over icon 57 and the cursor pointer has been activated by adepression of the mouse key. It is appreciated that there are severalother ways of activating the cursor pointer which have been discussedalready above. When the cursor 50 is activated, the icon 57 is said tohave been selected and therefore is highlighted by the display system.Icon 57 is therefore highlighted, that is, displayed in a visiblydistinct manner with respect to the other icons. The window selectregion 74 is located in the upper left hand of the window 60. Thecomputer will close window 60 when the cursor 50 is moved on top of theregion 74 and the cursor is activated. When the window 60 closes it isremoved from the desktop area 20.

Refer to FIG. 5a which shows the Finder™ environment and the preferredembodiment of the Desk Drawer in the closed state. FIG. 5a issubstantially similar to FIG. 4a, however icon 57 is no longer selectedby the cursor pointer 50 and is displayed in a normal video mode. Theimportant change here is that the cursor pointer 50 has been moved fromthe window 60 region, downward, to a position on top of the region ofthe Desk Drawer handle 10, or first triggered display region. It shouldbe understood that FIG. 5a is a freeze frame of the moment just beforethe Desk Drawer opens since the cursor position triggers the Desk Drawerautomatically. FIG. 5a therefore, for clarity, shows the state of theDesk Drawer immediately prior to the Desk Drawer opening. The state ofFIG. 5a is thus very transient and the resultant display is seen in FIG.5b.

The handle 10 region may act as a "hot spot" or an "edge triggered"region and it is appreciated that it may respond to the cursor'sposition in either fashion. Both methods of invoking action are wellknown in the art of user interfaces for the Finder™. When the cursor 50position is moved to the handle 10 region, without more, the computeropens Desk Drawer. When an interface is invoked solely by the cursor'sposition on the display edge within a specialized display region, thismay be referred to as "edge triggering." When the entire specializedregion is active (i.e. not just the edge) then such region is called a"hot spot." It is to be appreciated that within the present inventionthe handle bar region 10 can be utilized as either a hot spot or an edgetriggered region. Either method is interchangeable. The specializeddisplay region utilized to open a drawer region in the present inventionis called a first trigger display region for first trigger means.

Refer to FIG. 5b which represents the state of the present inventionjust after the Desk Drawer opens fully. Previously the cursor pointer 50had reached the handle bar 10 region and this triggered the computer toopen Desk Drawer. When the Desk Drawer is triggered open, the handle bar10 quickly and visibly moves or "animates" upward from its closed stateon the bottom of the screen display 75. The handle bar 10 moves upwardover the desktop region 20 until it reaches a predetermined height 63, arelative distance away from the screen bottom 61. At this point 63 thehandle bar remains in a fixed position. Upon the Desk Drawer opening,the rectangular drawer space 30 is revealed along with its contents. Thedrawer space 30 is rectangular with a width across the width of thedisplay screen 75 and a height predetermined at the position where thehandle bar 10 is located 63. The width of the secondary display regionmay be less than the display width of the display screen 75. When DeskDrawer is open, the handle bar region is now called the "secondtriggered display region." When the Desk Drawer is open, the drawerspace 30 is always visible. The computer will open the drawer space 30"on top of" any previously visible image on the display screen. Forexample, in FIG. 5b, the drawer space 30 opens to partially cover thedesktop region 20, the window 60, and partially cover the icons 57 and58 which are inside window 60. As will be further discussed, the drawerspace 30 is considered a "window region." Therefore, as would beexpected, the drawer space 30 has the attributes of the desktop of theFinder™ user interface.

Referring still to FIG. 5b, the Desk Drawer is open and the drawer space30 is visible. As with all windows, when the drawer space 30 is visible,the contents of the Desk Drawer are accessible by the cursor pointer 50.Also, since the drawer space 30 opens "on top of" all other itemsdisplayed in the screen or subsequently placed on the screen, the iconswithin the drawer space will always be visible and accessible when thecomputer opens Desk Drawer to reveal the drawer space 30. Generally,icons are not accessible unless visible on the display screen. It isadvantageous, therefore, that all icons within the drawer space 30 willalways be accessible, i.e. visible, when the Desk Drawer opens. Withinthe drawer space 30, are visible icons 41, 51, 42, and 59. These fouricons have been previously placed within the Desk Drawer (see below forplacement mechanism) and were hidden from view when the Desk Drawer wasclosed. It should be noted that icon 42 represents a folder, and may beviewed as a closed window; if icon 42 was selected by the cursor pointer50 and activated, icon 42 would open to resemble the general displayformat of window 60 outside the drawer.

The position of cursor pointer 50, in FIG. 5b, is an important aspect ofthe open drawer space 30. When the processing logic opens Desk Drawer,the cursor pointer 50 does not move from its original position butrather remains in the same position it occupied when it edge triggeredthe Desk Drawer to open initially. That is, the cursor pointer 50position remains in the bottom region of the screen where the handle bar10 existed when the Desk Drawer was closed. The cursor pointer 50 isfree to move about the entire drawer space 30. Indeed, while within thedrawer space 30, the cursor pointer 50 has all the normal capabilitiesit possesses while in a typical Finder™ window or the desktop. Forexample, while within the drawer space 30, the cursor pointer 50 mayamong other things, select or highlight an icon, or it may drag apreviously selected icon to a new position, or it may invoke anapplication program represented by a selected icon.

The preferred embodiment, Desk Drawer, remains open while the cursorpointer 50 is free to move about the drawer space 30. Refer to FIG. 5b.The term, "drawer region" 35, refers to the display region comprisingboth the drawer space 30, also referred to generally as the secondarydisplay region, and the handle bar region 10, now called the secondtriggered display region. As shown by FIG. 5b, only the height of thedrawer region is shown by point 35; but it is to be understood that thedrawer region is two dimensional having a width of the display screen75. Therefore, while the cursor pointer 50 remains within the drawerregion 35, the processing logic will not close Desk Drawer and thepresent invention will remain in its open state with drawer space 30accessible.

The processing logic immediately reverts Desk Drawer back to the closedstate when, without more, the cursor pointer 50 moves outside the drawerregion 35. For instance, referring to FIG. 5b, the cursor pointer 50 isshown in its original position that edge triggered the Desk Draweropening. If the cursor pointer 50 is caused to move upwards towards thetop of display screen 75, it will eventually reach the region of thehandle bar 10. When the Desk Drawer is open and the cursor pointer 50reaches handle bar region 10, now the second triggered display region,there is no automatic edge triggering of the Desk Drawer like there waswhen the Desk Drawer was closed. That is, the automatic edge triggeringmechanism of the Desk Drawer for the handle bar region 10 is deactivatedwhen the Desk Drawer is already open. However, if the cursor pointer 50moves out of the region of the handle bar 10, away from the drawer space30, then it is said to have left the drawer region 35. When the cursorpointer 50 leaves the drawer region 35, the computer automaticallycloses Desk Drawer without more. In other words, the mere act of thecursor pointer leaving the drawer region 35 is enough to edge triggerthe closing of the Desk Drawer in the normal mode of Desk Draweroperation. It should be appreciated that other mouse and/or keyboardcommands may be effectuated to close the Desk Drawer. However, in thenormal operation of the present invention the cursor pointer 50 positionedge triggers the Desk Drawer close. When the computer closes DeskDrawer, the position of the cursor pointer 50 remains constant.

Referring to FIG. 6, the computer closes Desk Drawer by quickly andvisibly "animating" the handle bar 10 downward thus reducing the drawerspace 30 until the draw space 30 and its contents are not visibleanymore. At this point the icons (41, 51, 42, 59) within the drawerspace 30 are temporarily not accessible. The handle bar 10 is the onlyvisible portion of the Desk Drawer when closed. As shown in FIG. 6, thecursor has just left the portion of the screen that contained the drawerregion 35 and entered the window region of window 60. This event causesthe Desk Drawer to close, leaving the cursor pointer 50 in the thatposition where the cursor pointer 50 just exited the drawer space 30. Inthis closed state, the handle bar 10 is again active, called the firsttriggered display region, and will open the drawer if the cursor pointer50 edge triggers the bar 10 space or "hot spot."

The above describes the basic operations of opening and closing thepreferred embodiment of Desk Drawer to allow access to the contents ofthe drawer space 30. It was mentioned that the Desk Drawer should beviewed as an extension of the desktop and that further the Desk Draweroperates in much the same manner as a typical window. Therefore, theDesk Drawer interface allows the user to easily transfer information(files) between the drawer space and other windows or the desktopenvironment. Refer to FIG. 4a which was described earlier. Itillustrates the cursor pointer 50 over the icon 57. The icon 57 iscurrently highlighted, or "selected" by the cursor which is shownactivated. In this selected state, the computer will move icon 57 by thecorresponding movement of the cursor pointer 50. This movement of theicon 57 with the cursor pointer 50 is referred to as "dragging." Thus,the icon 57 is said to be "dragged" by the cursor pointer 50. When theicon 57 is dragged to the desired position on the screen, the user maydrop the icon via the cursor device 82, 83 (FIG. 2). Once the icon 57 isdropped it will remain in that position until moved again by the cursordevice 82, 83. Therefore, by using the mouse device (which is only oneof many ways to effectuate movement of the cursor pointer 50) the usercan easily move icons around the screen from their initial position todifferent or target positions.

The effect of moving an icon from one visible screen location to anothervisible screen location is to have the computer transfer (or copy) theinformation representing by the icon to different places within theinformation management system. For instance, an icon may be moved aroundin the region of a single window, or an icon may be moved from onewindow region to another window region, or an icon can be moved betweena window region and the desk top. If an icon is moved from one windowspace to another window space, then that icon is graphically transferredto the new window and graphically removed from the old window. In thisfashion the user interface allows information (files) to be easily movedor copied to different locations within the information managementsystem.

Since the drawer space is similar to a typical window space, icons maybe easily moved into and out of the secondary display region, or deskspace, of the present invention. FIGS. 4a and 4b illustrate one methodof transferring information from a window 60 to the drawer space 30 ofthe Desk Drawer. Refer to FIG. 4a. The cursor pointer 50 is placed overthe desired icon 57 and the cursor device is activated thus highlightingand selecting the icon 57. The icon 57 can then be "dragged" by themovement of the cursor pointer 50. The user must open the Desk Drawerinterface in order to place the icon 57 into the drawer space 30;however at present Desk Drawer is closed. In order to place the icon 57into the drawer space 30, Desk Drawer must be open. The user drags theicon 57 (and cursor pointer 50) from its initial position downwardtoward the handle bar 10. While the cursor pointer 50 is dragging theicon 57 it is still active to edge trigger the handle bar 10 on the hotspot. Therefore when the position of the cursor pointer 50 (with theassociated dragged icon 57) reaches the handle bar region 10, thecomputer opens Desk Drawer to the predetermined height. As long as thecursor pointer 50 remains within the drawer region 35, the Desk Drawerremains open.

The resultant effect of placing an icon 57 into the drawer space isshown by the illustration of FIG. 4b. The Desk Drawer interface is shownopen by the computer, with the drawer space 30 existing partially overwindow region 60. Also, icon 57 is shown highlighted within the drawerspace 30. Since the cursor pointer 50 was dragging icon 57, icon 57 willshow in the foreground, in front of the drawer space 30. To complete thetransfer of icon 57 from window 60 to the drawer space 30, the usersimply drops icon 57, via the cursor device, once icon 57 has beendragged within the drawer space 30. Once dropped by the cursor means,icon 57 will appear as a new addition to the drawer space 30; and icon57 will no longer exist within window region 60. The Desk Drawerinterface will remain open while the cursor pointer 50 remains withinthe drawer region 35. When the cursor pointer 50 moves outside thedrawer region 35, the computer will close Desk Drawer and icon 57 willno longer be visible as the drawer space 30 closed and further sinceicon 57 was previously moved outside of the visible window region 60.Icon 57 will be accessible only when the Desk Drawer is open and drawerspace 30 is visible again. It is to be appreciated that within thepreferred embodiment file transfer may be effectuated from anyaccessible region of the Finder™ environment (including the desktopregion) to the Desk Drawer; and that further, transfer from the openwindow 60 is described merely as an example of this feature of thepresent invention.

The preferred embodiment of Desk Drawer allows icons to be easily"removed" from the drawer space 30 and placed into another window, oralternatively, some other section of the desktop region 20. Assume forthe next two sentences that Desk Drawer is closed and the user wants toremove an icon 57 from the drawer space 30 and transfer the icon 57 intothe currently open window 60 region. The cursor pointer 50 is moved tothe handle bar 10 causing the computer to open Desk Drawer. Refer toFIG. 4b. The contents of Desk Drawer are visible and accessible. Thecursor pointer 50 highlights or selects the target icon 57 as shown inFIG. 4b. The cursor pointer 50 "drags" the selected icon 57 away fromthe drawer space 30; here dragged upward until the cursor pointer 50leaves the outer most portion of the drawer region 35. When the cursorpointer 50 exits this region (the secondary display region), thecomputer closes Desk Drawer leaving the highlighted icon 57 and thecursor pointer 50 in the same display position that edge triggered theclosing; as shown the edge trigger position is within the open window 60region. The other icons 41, 42, 59 within the drawer space 30 are nolonger accessible since the Desk Drawer has closed. Referring to FIG.4a, the icon 57 and cursor pointer 50 would then be within the openwindow 60 region. At this point, icon 57 and cursor pointer 50 can bedragged anyplace within the desktop environment; notice icon 57 is stillselected. FIG. 4a illustrates the display when the icon 57 is draggedinto the lower left corner of window 60. Next, FIG. 6 illustrates thedisplay when icon 57 is dropped and thereby placed into window 60. DeskDrawer is shown closed. This procedure completes the transfer of theicon 57 from the Desk Drawer to the widow 60. It is to be appreciatedthat file transfer may be effectuated from the Desk Drawer to anyaccessible region of the Finder™ environment (including the desktopregion); and that further, transfer into the open window 60 is describedmerely as an example of this feature.

It is important to note that icons may NOT open into windows within thedrawer space, but rather open onto the desktop 20. Icons representingclosed windows may be placed into Desk Drawer (secondary display region)in the usual fashion as described above. If an icon representing aclosed window ("folder") were placed into the drawer space 30 it wouldappear in the same manner as it appeared outside the drawer space 30.However, the folder within the drawer space 30, when opened, may notopen into the drawer space as an open window. Rather, the folder willopen onto the desktop region 20 in its predetermined position. If thispredetermined position happens to be in the same screen position of thestill open drawer space 30, then the drawer space 30 will partiallycover the window and the window will thus be partially accessible. Whenthe computer closes Desk Drawer the window will be fully accessible tothe user. In addition, once the window closes, it would "zoom down" tothe handle bar which is symbolic of the fact that the Desk Drawer is theorigin of the window. It is important to realize that windows do notopen in the drawer space 30 because of the size constraints of DeskDrawer. Further, the present invention was designed in part to solve theproblems of icon accessibility and window overlap which may be thwartedby full sized windows within the drawer space 30.

Open windows on the desktop 20 may be dragged or placed into the drawerspace 30 of the present invention, but they undergo a transformation.Specifically, one such possible transformation is described below. Theopen windows when placed into the drawer space 30 do not remain in fullsize. Upon being placed into the drawer space 30, the open windowsundergo a shrinking process whereby they compress from their normaldisplay size to a size roughly the size of two icons in area. At thispoint the compressed window or "thumbnail" window is allowed to enterthe drawer space 30. Thumbnail windows may not be accessed for theircontents, but serve only a display function. Part of the thumbnailwindow may be undiscernible because of the compression, however otherparts may still be recognizable. The contents of a thumbnail windows areupdated, if appropriate, in real time. The important aspect of thethumbnail window is that the window is for display only and the normalaccessing capabilities of the window are temporarily shut off (i.e. thecontents of a thumbnail window may not be edited in this state). Toregain access to the window and its contents, it must be dragged orplaced out of the drawer region 30 and placed back out in the otherFinder™ environment. In the process of dragging the thumbnail window outof the drawer space 30, it will automatically "regain" its normal sizeand functions.

The present invention functions to enhance and facilitate utilization ofother common interfaces of the Finder™ environment; an illustration isshown where Desk Drawer enhances access to the trash can 59 utility. Acommon use of Desk Drawer is to place the "trash can" icon 59 into thedrawer space 30. This allows facilitated access to the trash can 59 whenother windows are open on the display screen 75 that may cover the trashcan 59 if located in the desktop area. For instance, assume the icon 57as displayed in FIG. 4a is to be discarded. The cursor pointer selectedicon 57 as shown, then the icon 57 is dragged downward such that thecursor pointer 50 touches the handle bar 10 thus opening the DeskDrawer. Refer to FIG. 4b. The trash can 59 is now accessible and icon 57is still highlighted. The icon 57 is further dragged horizontally untilit reaches the trash can icon 59. Icon 57 enters the trash can 59 whenthe cursor pointer is deactivated by the cursor device 82,83. If therehad been an obstructing window open in the lower right hand corner ofthe display screen 75 it would cover that portion of the screen. If thetrash can 59 were located merely on the desktop then it would also becovered by this obstructing window and therefore not accessible. Theobstructing window would have to be closed or moved before the trash can59 could be utilized. However, if the trash can 59 is placed in the DeskDrawer, it would be constantly accessible when the Desk Drawer opens;this is true since the drawer space 30 opens "over" any other window onthe display screen 75. Accordingly, in order to insert icon 57 into thetrash 59, the obstructing window need not be closed or moved since thedrawer space 30 would open over the window. In fact, using theadvantageous features of the present invention the window is no longer"obstructing" at all. Desk Drawer may similarly enhance the utilizationof other programs and interfaces within the Finder™ environment.

For purposes of clarity and example only the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention is described as situated on the bottom of the screendisplay 75. It is to be appreciated that Desk Drawer may be situated onany side of the display screen, left, right or on the top. The user mayselect the placement of the Desk Drawer by option command. In theseinstances, for example the "left" hand side, the handle bar, firsttriggered display region, would exist vertically on the left side of thedisplay screen 75. In this left hand position all data access, transferand other features of Desk Drawer would remain substantially constant.When the computer opens the drawer space 30, in this left position,instead of animating upward from the bottom, Desk Drawer would animateoutward from the left to occupy a region on the left side of the screen.Likewise, if the handle bar 10 was selected on the screen top, thecomputer would animate the drawer space 30 downward to a predeterminedposition when the top handle bar 10 was edge triggered by the cursorpointer 50.

The size of the drawer space 30 is variable within the preferredembodiment. The drawer space 30, or secondary display region, isinitially set to a default size which is substantially 20% of the totalscreen display area; FIG. 7a represents the default size and theserelative proportions are well illustrated therein. When Desk Drawer isopen, the present invention allows the size (visible area) of the drawerspace 30 to be adjusted by user control. Referring to FIGS. 7a and 7b,in this fashion, the predetermined height 63 of the handle bar 10 caneasily be adjusted to provide a custom environment for the user. WhenDesk Drawer is open the current handle bar region is also called thesecond triggered display region. To adjust the drawer space 30, the DeskDrawer must be open. In FIG. 7a, the Desk Drawer is shown open with thecursor pointer 50 located on the handle bar region 10, second triggereddisplay region. In order to expand the drawer space 30, the cursordevice activates the cursor pointer 50 when the pointer is located inthe handle bar 10 region. In many instances the activation isaccomplished by pressing down the mouse button 83. While activated, thecursor pointer 50 is then moved upward by the cursor device. See FIG.7b. This upward movement causes the handle bar to be "dragged" upwardthus revealing more accessible drawer space 30. The icons in the drawermay also move upward by an equal amount. When the handle bar 10 reachesthe desired height 68 the cursor pointer 50 is fixed and deactivated.Now, the new handle bar 10 position is set to the adjusted position 68.It is appreciated that when the additional drawer space 30 is revealed,it opens on top of any other elements in the display screen. This isbecause the additional drawer space has all the attributes of theoriginal drawer space 30; the icons in the drawer would normally moveupward with the handle bar 10. FIG. 7b illustrates the resultant viewwhen the handle bar 10 is moved to a new predetermined height 68. Asshown, more of window 60 is covered by the additional drawer space thanpreviously covered in FIG. 7a. In this example the new drawer region 68is roughly three times the area of the previous region 63. New icons(files) can be placed into this larger drawer region 68. The presentinvention does not provide for an upper limit restricting the height ofthe adjustable handle bar 10, second triggered display region. However,the display screen 75 top is an inherent limit.

This adjusted height 68 of FIG. 7b will be automatically set into theDesk Drawer so that subsequent access to the Desk Drawer will cause thecomputer to open the drawer space 30 to that new predetermined height68. For example, when the cursor pointer 50 leaves the drawer space 30the Desk Drawer will close. When opened again, the handle bar 10 willanimate upward to the last adjusted height, or in this example, to thenew height 68.

The drawer space 30 can also be adjusted smaller than the default size63. The mechanism of the preferred embodiment for reduction is similarto that of the enlargement mechanism, as just discussed. Accordingly, toshrink the drawer space 30, the cursor pointer 50 rests within thehandle bar 10 region and activates the handle bar 10. The cursor pointer50 then "drags" the handle bar 10 downward, reducing the size of thedrawer space 30 while uncovering previously hidden desktop elements.Referring to FIG. 7a, if the Desk Drawer were reduced in size, thedrawer space 30 would shrink, the predetermined height 63 would movecloser to the bottom (for example point 64) of the display screen 75,and more of window 60 would be revealed. When the desired position wasreached 64, the cursor pointer 50 is fixed and deactivated to set thenew height 64 into place. As before, this new height 64 would be set forfuture access into the Desk Drawer. It is appreciated that if the newdrawer space 30 height 64 should be smaller than the height of an iconwithin the Desk Drawer, then that icon will be only partially visible inthe drawer space 30.

The present invention may become deactivated by reducing the drawerspace 30. If the drawer space 30 is reduced completely, that is, if thehandle bar 10 is dragged to the bottom of the screen display 75 to theclosed position, then the Desk Drawer is temporarily deactivated. Thisis so because when the handle bar 10 is at the bottom of the screen,drawer space 30 is no longer visible. Since no drawer space 30 isvisible, none will be accessible and the present invention iseffectively "switched off" since the icons within the drawer space 30(secondary display region) are not accessible. This is a convenientmethod of temporarily deactivating the preferred embodiment. While thehandle bar 10 is in this state, icons of the drawer space 30 aretemporarily not accessible. It is appreciated that when deactivated inthis manner, the present invention is still operating and the handle bar10 remains accessible to the user. Therefore, using the enlargementtechnique described above, the user may easily "switch on" the DeskDrawer by dragging the handle bar 10 upward once again to create auseful sized drawer space 30.

Refer to FIG. 8. When reducing the drawer space 30 by dragging thehandle bar 10 downward, icons within the drawer space will be displacedby an equal amount and direction so that they do not become covered bythe displaced handle bar 10. This displacement will continue until theicon reaches the appropriate screen edge where they become "pinned" tothe edge; at this point further handle bar 10 displacement will causeonly unpinned icons to be displaced while the pinned icons remain fixedagainst the screen edge. It is appreciated that as the secondary displayregion shrinks, the icons will maintain their distance from the handlebar 10. For instance, Desk Drawer is shown open about 33% of the displayscreen. As the handle bar 10 descends, icons 43 and 44 will descend inconjunction with the handle bar movement while maintaining as constanttheir distance with the bar 10. All icons within the secondary displayregion move down until they reach the edge of the screen where they willpin. As the drawer is closed further, eventually the handle bar willreach the icons pinned at the edge of the screen. The icons now pinagainst the handle bar. When the handle bar 10 is displaced (dragged)downward further, the icons 41, 51, 43, 44, 42, 59, which are pinnedagainst the handle bar 10, will be partially obscured from the edge ofthe visible screen 75. Therefore these icons will be partially visible.However, an individual icon will still be accessible as long as aportion is still visible. Eventually if the handle bar 10 is displacedto the extreme downward position, the icons and the drawer space 30 willno longer be visible nor accessible and Desk Drawer becomes temporarilydeactivated. This process reverses then the drawer is expanded.

If after reducing the drawer space 30, the handle bar 10 was draggedopen again to position 68 of FIG. 8, then the two icons 43 and 44 wouldreturn to their original positions. As they ascended they wouldmaintain, as constant, their distance from the handle bar 10. Therefore,it is a feature of the present invention that icons displaced by theclosing handle bar 10 will revert to their initial positions once thedrawer space 30 is enlarged to accommodate their original positions.

Also, it is a feature of the present invention to prevent icons frombeing dragged off the visible display edge when the drawer space 30 isopen. Refer to FIG. 4b. For instance, the Desk Drawer is open and icon57 has been selected. At this stage the icon 57 will be draggedaccording to the movement of the cursor pointer 50. The cursor devicemay direct the cursor 50 to drag the icon 57 downward until the lowerportion of the icon reaches the bottom edge 15 of the drawer space 30.At this point the icon 57 will no longer move downward, but stay"pinned" on the bottom edge while the cursor pointer 50 is free to movedownward until it reaches the bottom edge point. When both icon 57 andcursor pointer 50 reach the bottom edge 15, then no further edgewardmovement is allowed; the icons may become only partially hidden.Contrast this procedure with that of a closing handle bar 10, asdiscussed above in which the closing action may cause drawer space iconsto become substantially or fully covered when the drawer space heightdecreases below that of the icon height.

The present invention stores the lateral positions of icons placedwithin the Desk Drawer as relative positions with respect to the widthof the display screen 75. That is, each icon's lateral position is, infact, normalized to that of the available screen width for a particularcomputer screen. The information is stored according to the followingequation:

    Icon.sub.-- Lateral.sub.-- Pos=(Display.sub.-- Pos)/(Total.sub.-- Physical.sub.-- Screen.sub.-- Width1).

Where the Display₋₋ Pos represents the numeric value of the actuallateral position of the icon on the screen and Total₋₋ Physical₋₋Screen₋₋ Width1 represents the numeric value of the width or height ofthe display screen 75. This value will change depending on the screendisplay utilized. Icon₋₋ Lateral₋₋ Pos is the numeric value recorded byDesk Drawer. This is advantageous because if the display screen widthshould change, (because Desk Drawer is operated on different systems)then the stored relative positions of the icons can easily be translatedinto actual display positions on the new screen by the followingequation:

    Display.sub.-- Pos=(Total.sub.-- Physical.sub.-- Screen.sub.-- Width2)*Icon.sub.-- Lateral.sub.-- Pos.

Where Display₋₋ Pos is the new lateral display position of the icon.Total₋₋ Physical₋₋ Screen₋₋ Width2 is the width of the new computerdisplay screen and Icon₋₋ Lateral₋₋ Pos is the same stored value in DeskDrawer as previously calculated from the first equation.

The present invention features many advanced methods of interfacing withthe user. As already described, the cursor means may open a closed DeskDrawer by merely placing the cursor pointer 50 on the handle bar 10region. However, the present invention also allows the user toeffectuate Desk Drawer by several other means. One means is to move thecursor through the handle to the edge of the screen, called "edgetriggering." Another means of opening requires both cursor pointer 50position on the handle bar 10 region and simultaneously a depression(click) of the cursor button 83. This is called the "mouse down"operation. It is noted that when in this mode of operation, the DeskDrawer may open still when the user drags an icon to the handle bar 10region; this is because the act of dragging requires the mouse button tobe depressed anyway (clicked down). This separate method of opening DeskDrawer is selected via a command menu similar to that illustrated inFIG. 3. The present invention also readily interfaces with the keyboard81 such that cursor position and activation may be effectuated bypressing keys 86 or other predetermined key sequences. It is to beappreciated that the present invention fully accepts input from the EasyAccess system specially developed for the physical handicapped. EasyAccess is also referred to as "disabled access." Using Easy Access, DeskDrawer may accept a variety of cursor position movement (such as use ofthe keypad numbers 87) and activation commands from the keyboard orother specially adopted user input devices also accepted by Easy Access.It is to be appreciated that when Desk Drawer is under keyboard controlthe position of the cursor pointer 50 no longer primarily controls theopening and closing of the Desk Drawer. Therefore, when in a keyboardaccess mode, Desk Drawer may open and close by special keyboard sequencecommands, regardless of the location of the cursor pointer 50.Accordingly, the cursor pointer 50 may be outside the drawer space 30and the Desk Drawer will remain open until a closing command sequence isreceived from the user input device.

When a window in the desktop environment closes, a rapid animationdisplay image takes place called "zoom down." In "zoom down" the closingwindow is quickly removed from the screen and a series of shrinkingwindow outlines is displayed on the screen in succession giving the"effect" of the window closing and reverting into its place of origin.The entire process is over well within a few seconds. The presentinvention, Desk Drawer, also provides this feature for icons locatedwithin the drawer space 30. That is, when an open icon residing withinthe Desk Drawer is closed, the closing window will "zoom down" with theanimation outlines directed toward the location of the handle bar 10region. This gives the effect of the icon returning to the Desk Drawerafter being closed.

The present invention as described above has been illustrated withmerely one drawer space 30 for the objectives of clarity and simplicityof discussion. However, the single drawer space 30 condition is merelythe basic operational level of the Desk Drawer. The present invention isnot limited to one drawer space 30, but rather, allows for "multipledrawer spaces" to be accessible to the user; this advanced capability isaccomplished by providing multiple handle bar regions.

In the physical sense, multiple drawer spaces may be understood asmultiple partitions of an office desk drawer. Or alternatively, multipledrawer partitions may be viewed as multiple levels of the side drawersof an office desk. Each partition is individually accessible to theuser. Therefore, different items can be placed within different drawerspace partitions. However, like the side drawers of an office desk, onlyone drawer space 30 is accessible to the user at any one given time whenthe Desk Drawer is open. To this extent, multiple drawer partitions maynot be simultaneously accessible to the user. Although the drawer spacepartitions may not be simultaneously accessible, information is stillreadily transferable between the partitions. It is to be furtherappreciated that a multiple drawer space partition possess the samecapabilities and features as a single drawer space 30.

Specifically, Desk Drawer multiple drawer space partitions ("drawerspace partitions") are described in further detail. Refer to FIG. 9awhich illustrates Desk Drawer in the closed state with four separateclosed drawer space partitions. Multiple drawer space partitions requiremultiple handle bars since each partition is independently accessible.Therefore, the normal handle bar has a new appearance as illustrated bythe segmented handle bar 18. It is appreciated that the handle barsegments may be colored or labeled textually or otherwise set apart tofurther distinguish each from the others. Handle bar 18 has been dividedinto four separate and active regions (handle bar segments 92, 94, 96,98) each of which are independent and individual "hot spots" or edgetriggered regions. Segment 94 may be called the single first triggereddisplay region while segment 98 may be called the alternate firsttriggered display region.

Referring to FIG. 9a, for purposes of illustration there are four drawerspace partitions described. It is appreciated that a number of differentdrawer space partitions is possible, from zero to at least 10. When thevalue zero is selected then Desk Drawer is temporarily deactivated sinceno drawer spaces are defined. When one partition is selected then DeskDrawer operates in the basic or single drawer space level. The user mayselect this number and set Desk Drawer to the desired number of drawerspace partitions (0 to 10 or more) via a menu command similar to thatillustrated in FIG. 3. Referring now to FIG. 9a, the handle bar 18 ofthe Desk Drawer interface is broken down into four separate sections 92,94, 96, and 98. Each segment of the multiple handle bar 18 represents adifferent and individual drawer space. The whole handle bar 18 is evenlydivided in width according to the number of segments selected; thereforeeach individual segment is equal in width with respect the others. Forexample, if the user selected 8 drawer space partitions then handle bar18 would be divided into 8 equal regions half as wide as thoseillustrated in FIG. 9a.

An individual drawer space becomes accessible substantially the same wayas the single drawer space Desk Drawer; when the cursor pointer 50reaches the region containing one handle bar segment (one of 92, 94, 96,98), then that individual drawer space becomes singularly accessible asthe Desk Drawer opens. Refer to FIG. 9a. Each segment of the handle bar18 is separately edge triggered and simultaneously active. The cursorpointer 50 is located in the region of handle bar segment 94, singlefirst triggered display region, as shown in the illustration. This willcause the computer to open Desk Drawer, and further display the drawerspace 36 represented by this segment 94. The resultant open Desk Drawerand drawer space 36 is shown by FIG. 9b. The Desk Drawer opens to revealthe drawer space 36 which is represented by the handle bar segment 94.Within drawer space 36 are the icons 41, 51, 42 and 59 which are nowaccessible to the user. It is appreciated that different icons may beplaced within the other three drawer spaces represented by the otherthree handle bar segments 92, 96 and 98. In the open state, handle bar94 is now called the single second triggered display region.

Refer to FIG. 9b. A new feature of the multiple drawer space mode isthat other drawer space handle bars (92, 96, 98) remain active anddisplayed while one drawer space 36 is open. The other drawer spacehandle bar segments, alternate first triggered display regions, aredisplayed within the open drawer space. Since the other segments ofhandle bar 18 are still active, they remain at the bottom of the screenexcept for handle bar 94. Since handle bar segment 94 was selected ithas been removed from the screen bottom and replaced by an empty blockbetween segment 92 and segment 96. Since the Desk Drawer opened, handlebar 94 now exists on the top of the drawer space 36 with the full widthof the display screen 75 as a second triggered display region. It isappreciated that the drawers may be narrower than the full width of thedisplay screen, for example, the width of the handle segment associatedwith the drawer. Handle bar 94 has all the normal attributes andcapabilities as the handle bar 10 described in the single drawer space30 level. Accordingly, handle bar 94, second triggered display region,may be used to modify the size of the drawer space 36 area.

It is an important feature of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention that only one drawer space of a multiple drawer space systemmay be accessible at any one given time. The currently open drawer spacewill close when either the cursor leaves the drawer space region, thusclosing Desk Drawer, or when another drawer space is directed open. Whenanother drawer space is directed open by selection of one of the otherhandle bars, then the current drawer space closes "while" the new drawerspace opens, leaving a condition wherein only one drawer space is openat a time.

It is appreciated that the other three handle bar segments (92, 96, and98) remain active. For instance, if cursor pointer 50 is moved intosegment 98, the alternate first triggered display region, the followingwould simultaneously occur: (1) drawer space partition 36 would close,animating downward while (2) drawer space partition 38 opens. It isappreciated that drawer space 36 has closed, but the Desk Drawer hasremained in the open state since drawer space 38 was directed open. Theresultant display is shown in FIG. 9c. Handle bar segment 94 is againactive and visible since drawer space 36 closed and handle bar segment98 has been removed from the active segments. Handle bar segment 98, nowalternate second triggered display region, has become the new handle barfor the open drawer space 38 and is illustrated on the top of drawerspace 38. The cursor pointer 50 is shown in the position that previouslyedge triggered the drawer space 38 to open.

It is appreciated that each drawer space is a separate extension of thedesktop and that the drawer space 38 is independent and individualizedfrom drawer space 36. Therefore, the contents of drawer space 38 aredifferent from those of drawer space 36. Drawer space 38 contains icons25, 26 and 28 which are now accessible to the user via cursor pointer50. The contents of drawer space 36 being icons 41, 51, 42, and 59. Itis also appreciated that the other drawer space partitions (92 and 96)may be accessed in the manner described. If the cursor pointer 50 shouldleave the drawer region 35 then Desk Drawer would close and theresultant display is shown in FIG. 9a.

Referring to FIG. 9c, in the open state, the cursor pointer 50 couldadjust the size of drawer space 38 by using the handle bar 98 draggingtechnique as previously described. It is an important feature of DeskDrawer that each drawer space partition may be independently adjusted insize. If drawer space 38 is expanded by handle bar 98 then it remainsexpanded until adjusted othererwise. Drawer space 34 will not beeffected by the expansion of drawer space 38 and remains in the defaultsize unless drawer space 34 is itself adjusted. The result is that thepresent invention offers the advanced capability of having multipleindependent drawer spaces which may possess independent size and contentwhile providing access to only one at at time.

Just as files may be easily transferred into and out of a drawer spaceto the Finder™ environment, files may be easily transferred from onedrawer space partition to another without having to first move the filesinto the primary display region or desktop. Refer to FIG. 9b. Assumeicon 42 is to be transferred from drawer space 36 to drawer space 38. InFIG. 9b, drawer space 36 and icon 42 are accessible and handle barsegment 94 is shown open. Cursor pointer 50 may move onto icon 42 andselect the icon by depressing the cursor device button 83. Whileselected, the icon 42 and cursor pointer 50 are dragged down until thecursor pointer 50 reaches the active region of handle bar segment 98which represents drawer space 38. When segment 98 is reached,simultaneously drawer space 36 closes and drawer space 38 opens. Referto FIG. 9c. Icon 42 is now effectively removed from drawer space 34because that drawer space has closed and is not accessible. Since icon42 was selected, it will remain selected and visible after drawer space38 opens. The cursor pointer 50 and icon 42 are then dragged to theappropriate position of the currently open drawer space 38 and thendropped by releasing the depressed cursor device button 83. The icon 42will then become part of the drawer space of drawer space 38; thetransfer is complete of the icon from drawer space 36 to drawer space38.

FIG. 10a and FIG. 10b illustrate a basic block diagram of theoperational computer flow of the present invention. The flow chartserves to illustrate the basic computer "engine" of the presentinvention. Note that routine cursor movement and Desk Drawer optioncommand access, as shown in FIG. 3, are well known techniques in the artand accordingly are not shown on the flow chart.

Referring to FIG. 10a, the flow chart begins at state 200 with thecomputer generating Desk Drawer in the closed state and the processinglogic displaying and activating the handle bar segments 18, called thefirst triggered display region. While the drawer is closed, theprocessing logic at state 202 checks if the pointer is over a handle barsegment. If true then state 203 is entered and if not then theprocessing moves to state 206 where the processing logic allows thecursor pointer 50 to freely move about the screen location and select207, drop 235, or drag 209 various icons as shown by states 206, 207,208, 230, 235 and 209. State 206 checks if the pointer is activated. Ifnot activated then the processing is directed to state 202. If true,then at state 230 the computer checks if pointer is on an icon. Iffalse, then the present icon is deselected at state 235 and processingreturns to state 202. If true, the pointer is on the icon and activated,then state 207 is entered. If the icon was not already selected then theicon would become presently selected at 207. At state 208, when the iconis selected while the cursor pointer is moved then the processing isdirected to state 209 where the icon is dragged on the display screen.The same is true for state 220. The processing returns to state 202.

Referring still to FIG. 10a. The computer checks if the pointer 50reaches a bar segment 18 at state 202 (a segment in this form is alsocalled a first triggered display region). If false, the computer returnsto state 206. If true, the computer goes to state 203 and opens DeskDrawer to display a drawer region corresponding to the bar segment,first triggered display region, selected. The computer next checks tosee if the pointer 50 ventures off the drawer region at state 204. Iftrue, then the computer closes the Desk Drawer by state 205 and returnsto state 202. If false, the computer moves to state 210. At state 210the computer checks to see if the pointer 50 has selected another activebar segment, alternate first triggered display region, from handle bar18. If true, then the user wants to open another drawer space and thecomputer simultaneously closes the active drawer space and opens the newdrawer space by states 211 and 212 respectively. Then the computerreturns to state 204.

Refer to FIG. 10b. If state 210 was false, the computer goes to state242. If the pointer is active the computer returns to state 204, if notthen the computer goes to state 213. At state 213 if the pointer 50 ison the current open handle bar, or also referred to as second triggereddisplay region (on the top usually), then the computer goes to state 214to check if the pointer is newly activated. If not activated thecomputer returns state 204. If activated at 214 the computer thenadjusts the drawer space size according to the cursor movement by state215, adjusts the location of individual icons within the drawer asnecessary 243, then checks at state 216 to see if the cursor isdeactivated. If deactivated, the computer sets the new drawer size andreturns to state 204. If not deactivated the computer returns to state215. At state 213, if the pointer is not on the current open handle bar,then the computer goes to state 217 to perform the routine cursor iconselect 220, deselect 241, and drag 220 functions (217, 218, 219, 220,240, 241, see discussion of similar processing for states 206, 230, 235,207, 208 and 209 above). Then the computer returns to state 204.

FIG 10c shows a more detailed flow diagram of states 203 and 212.Referring to expanded state 203, this state operates under both modes ofsingle or multiple drawer spaces. At state 305, the screen positions ofthe icons, including icon lateral position, are calculated from theirrelative positions and placed on the display screen concurrently withthe display of state 301. The processing logic at state 301 opens theselected drawer space and displays that portion on the display screen.At state 302 multiple drawer operation is determined. If multiple thenstate 303 is entered, else state 304 is entered. At state 303 ifmultiple drawer spaces have been selected then alternate segments aredisplayed within the current drawer space so that other drawer spacesmay be selected. These alternate segments are called alternate firsttriggered display regions. Also within state 303, the current firsttriggered display region is removed since the current drawer space isdisplayed. At state 304 the handle bar region of the selected drawerspace is displayed at the upper portion of the display region. Thishandle bar region is called the second triggered display region. Theprocessing then exits expanded state 203.

Referring still to FIG. 10c, expanded state 212 operates under multipledrawer space mode. State 315 calculates the screen icon positions,including icon lateral position, from their relative positions anddisplays the icons on the display screen. Next, state 307 opens the newdrawer space and places it on the screen. State 309 removes the currentfirst triggered display region, the segment that triggered the newdrawer space to open. State 311 displays the alternate segmentsrepresenting the other drawer spaces, alternate first triggered displayregions. State 313 displays the second triggered display region, orhandle bar used to adjust the size of the drawer space for each drawer.The processing then exists expanded state 212.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention, a computer controlledsoftware user interface providing a ready access secondary displayregion, is thus described. While the present invention has beendescribed in one particular embodiment, it should be appreciated thatthe present invention should not be construed as limited by suchembodiment.

What is claimed is:
 1. In a computer controlled information managementsystem including a display screen containing a first display regionwhich allows the display of a plurality of overlapping windows at agiven time, a method comprising:displaying a second display regioncovering at least a portion of said first display region and any windowsbeing displayed within said portion of the first display region, saidsecond display region, when present in a mode, being completely viewablewithin said display screen such that, while said second display regionis displayed it is always displayed over and covering other dataincluding said plurality of windows to the extent said plurality ofwindows are in said portion of said first display region; resizing saidsecond display region by positioning a pointer displayed on said displayscreen on a first region of said second display region; selectivelytransferring information from said second display region into one ofsaid plurality of windows.
 2. A method as in claim 1 wherein said stepof selectively transferring information comprises selecting a selectedinformation and dragging the selected information from said seconddisplay region to said one of said plurality of windows.
 3. A method asin claim 2 wherein said second display region is a window.
 4. A methodas in claim 2 wherein said second display region comprises a triggerregion which is displayed when said second display region is notdisplayed.
 5. A method as in claim 4 wherein said trigger region, whendisplayed cannot be obscured on said display screen by any of saidplurality of windows.
 6. A computer readable medium containingexecutable program instructions for:displaying a first display regionwhich allows the display of a plurality of windows on a display screen;displaying a second display region which covers at least a portion ofsaid first display region and any windows being displayed within saidportion, said second display region, when present in a mode, beingcompletely viewable on said display screen such that, while said seconddisplay region is displayed, it is always displayed over and coveringsaid plurality of windows to the extent said plurality of windows are insaid portion of said first display region; resizing said second displayregion by positioning a pointer displayed on said display screen on afirst region of said second display region; selectively transferringinformation from said second display region into one of said pluralityof windows.
 7. A computer readable medium as in claim 6 wherein saidstep of selectively transferring information comprises selecting aselected information and dragging the selected information from saidsecond display region to said one of said plurality of windows.
 8. Acomputer readable medium as in claim 7 wherein said second displayregion is a window.
 9. A computer readable medium as in claim 7 whereinsaid second display region comprises a trigger region which is displayedwhen said second display region is not displayed.
 10. A computerreadable medium as in claim 9 wherein said trigger region, whendisplayed cannot be obscured on said display screen by any of saidplurality of windows.